Organisation of Islamic Cooperation
The Collective Voice of The Muslim World
Date: 24/10/2014
The Secretary General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation has in his continued efforts to narrow the gap between the positions of the leaderships of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) and Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) as requested by the OIC CFM sent his Special Envoy for Peace in Southern Philippines, Ambassador Sayed Kassem El-Masry. The main objectives of the Mission was to follow up the results of an earlier meeting that was held in Jeddah between the two parties in June 16, 2014 where they decided to activate and operationalize the Bangsamoro Coordinating Forum (BCF). The Manila meeting was held under the Chairmanship of the Special Envoy for Peace in Southern Philippines with the participation of H. E. Mahmoud Mostafa, Ambassador of Arab Republic of Egypt to Philippines, the current chairman of the Peace Committee for Southern Philippines (PCSP) and the Charge d’ Affaires of Saudi Arabia as Vice Chair. The delegation of MNLF, according to the Jeddah formula was headed by Attorney Randopl Percarsio while the delegation of MILF was headed by Mr. Mohaghir Igbal. The meeting formally declared the activation and operationalization of the BCF, which will be composed of 20 members, 10 from each side (MNLF and MILF); according to the Jeddah formula it will meet regularly every 3 months under the chairmanship of the Secretary General or his representative or the chair of the PCSP. It can meet in a special session upon the request of one of the parties or the OIC Secretary General. One of the main achievements of the meeting was the agreement of two fronts to utilize the BCF as a venue for coordination and discussion of the concerns confronting the Bangsamoro people including finding common grounds between the 3 peace agreements signed with the Government of Philippines namely: the 1976 Tripoli Agreement, 1996 Jakarta Final Peace Agreement and the Comprehensive Agreement of Bangsamoro (CAB). They agreed also to harmonize the two peace tracks in order to preserve the gains contained in these agreements which they declared that they mutually recognized and respect. The Forum will have a joined Secretariat composed from members of the two fronts, and the meeting adopted a detailed terms of reference to govern the work of the Forum. The Government of Philippines (GPH) welcomed this breakthrough and thanked the OIC Secretary General for his initiative. The OIC expects the GPH to see to it that it will present to the Congress any common position the two fronts could arrive at that is compatible with the constitution and that the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) would reflect this common position. The OIC on its part informed the parties concerned that its objective is to help the Bangsamoro people achieve their aspirations for a just solution to their problems through peaceful means. One of the principles governing the OIC position in this regard is strict respect for territorial integrity of the countries where the Muslim Minorities belonged. The OIC delegation made it clear to the parties concerned that it will never accept or tolerate any separatist movement or any calls that may touch upon the territorial integrity of the Republic of Philippines. The OIC will continue to recognize the Jeddah formula as the official representative of the MNLF. During his visit to Manila, Ambassador El-Masry, the OIC Special Envoy for Peace in Southern Philippines handed a letter addressed to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Philippines from the Secretary General concerning the situation of Dr. Nur Misuari, the MNLF Chairman. In his letter, the Secretary General asked the President of Philippines to consider dropping the charges against Dr. Misuari since there are no legal impediments in this regard. The BCF will hold a special meeting shortly to try to draft a paper outlining the position of the two fronts, vis-à-vis the BBL. This paper will be delivered to the Government of Philippines.
